Volunteer advocates devote time for children in need

Lehigh County program helps abused, neglected youth.

LuAnn Steinhauer and Melinda Diefenderfer are living the African proverb, "It takes a village to raise a child."

Like the other 31 court-appointed special advocates in Lehigh County, they come from diverse backgrounds.

But they all have one goal: to help abused or neglected children achieve permanency in their lives and to help judges decide what should happen to children who have been declared dependent.

As the county's advocate program enters its second year, the volunteer advocate ranks continue to grow, along with the number of children who can benefit from their services.

A class of six advocates, who join a nationwide network of volunteers in similar programs, was sworn in May 9 by Lehigh County Judge Edward D. Reibman. It is the county's fifth class of advocates since 2003.

In 2004, advocates gave 3,400 hours of their time. So far this year, they have spent 1,500 hours working with children.

On average, a volunteer spends about 15 hours a month on assigned cases, but that varies depending on the case.

Volunteers currently are working with 63 children. Based in part on information culled by advocates, a judge can decide if a child should stay in foster care, live with relatives, return to parents or become eligible for adoption.

Last year, when the county's program was certified by the National Court Appointed Special Advocate Association, more than 700 children were still needing a volunteer, according to program director Elizabeth Edwards.

"Unfortunately, there's never a shortage of children needing the support and help," she said.

Volunteers get to know a child and the people in that child's life, including parents, siblings, teachers, parents, doctors and social service agencies involved with the family.

In some ways, Steinhauer's path to the court-appointed special advocate began when she was 13. A minister's daughter, Steinhauer was pulled out of Sunday school class in Maple Shade, N.J., and asked to substitute for an absent nursery school teacher.

From that moment on, "I knew that I wanted to work with people," she said.

Steinhauer, 70, of Allentown, spent 27 years teaching, 24 of them in the Allentown School District's special education department.

Becoming an advocate seemed like a natural choice after she retired. In 2003, she was among the first 14 advocates to be sworn in.

"I feel I get as much from it as I give," Steinhauer said.

For Diefenderfer, 56, of Allentown, becoming an advocate was serendipitous.

When someone in Virginia told her about a CASA program four years ago, she thought, "I would love to do that."

She later learned that Lehigh County was starting a program. She filled out an application, went to training sessions and was accepted into the first group.

A retired senior business analyst for the IBM Corp., Diefenderfer had been looking for the right volunteer opportunity. Doing office work wasn't going to fit the bill.

"I wanted something different and meaningful for me," she said.

Diefenderfer has had four cases. One case was closed, meaning the children are in safe, stable environments and the court has vacated the dependency order.

She has three open cases and has been an advocate for eight children in two years. The children ranged in age from infants to 16-year-olds.

"I absolutely love getting to know these kids," she said.

The program has given her a connection to the community that she didn't have in the corporate world.

"I feel very closely tied to my community," she said.

Steinhauer, who is still with her first case, said she learned a lot about different social agencies. But she also learned that there are long waiting lists for services, which can be frustrating.

Of paramount importance is what is in the best interest of the child.

"It's not that the parents don't care about the child," Steinhauer said. "They may have too many problems of their own or may not be up to providing for the needs of the children."

For Diefenderfer, being an advocate has been an eye-opening experience.

"I really thought I knew a lot about what was happening in my community, but you don't really know until you are up close and personal with these problems," she said.

Potential advocates have to complete a written application and be interviewed by Edwards. They also undergo 40-45 hours of training over seven weeks.

Applicants must pass criminal and background checks.

As part of their training, advocates observe juvenile court proceedings.

Advocates train for an additional 12-15 hours each year because every case is different and it is hard to anticipate all the issues and questions, according to Edwards.

Speakers at the continuing training may talk about public housing, special education and educational rights of children in foster care, welfare regulations or mental health issues.

Steinhauer and Diefenderfer said that training has been valuable.

Groups of advocates meet with Edwards once a month to talk about their cases. They sometimes meet for meals to support each other and exchange ideas.